Cristiano Ronaldo to earn $10m in Facebook deal - report

Cristiano Ronaldo

Facebook is in discussions for what could be its biggest original series deal to date: a reality show about global soccer superstar Cristiano Ronaldo, Variety has learned.

The social giant is in talks to bring the Ronaldo docu-series to Facebook Watch, its video platform for TV-style content, according to multiple sources. 

Facebook is prepped to invest substantial coin in the project: The Portuguese footballer could get a paycheck of around $10 million for the 13-episode show, sources say.

CAA is packaging the series, to be produced by Matador Content and Religion of Sports, a sports-media firm founded by Gotham Chopra, Michael Strahan, Tom Brady and production company Dirty Robber. 

Sources differed on how advanced the negotiations are; one said a deal is close to being finalized while another characterized the talks as nascent.

Reps for Facebook, CAA and Religion of Sports declined to comment. Matador founder and CEO Jay Peterson did not respond to a request for information.

Ronaldo is the most popular athlete on Facebook — he has more than 120 million followers for his official page — and is among the most-recognized sports celebrities in the world. 

He plays for Spanish pro team Real Madrid and the national Portugal team, which was eliminated from the 2018 World Cup last Saturday after losing to Uruguay in the round of 16.